Let’s make a list of creative first date questions since the standard interview style ones of “What do you do” & “Tell me about your family” can get a little, well, interviewish. Questions should preferably be open ended so as to create discussion and should have an expected positive response. I’ll throw a few out to start. Feel free to answer your own question.
Q: When was the last time you touched an animal that wasn’t a cat or dog?
A: I hiked the Hollywood sign this weekend and a little lizard ran over my foot.
Q: When was the last time you purchased something in a foreign currency? What was it?
A: I went to Mexico over Christmas break with my brother and purchased several street tacos in Pesos.
What 3 things do you take with you to a desert island?
President Bush: one of the greatest Presidents ever or THE greatest President ever? (credit to Colbert for that one!! She’ll either get the joke or actually try to respond - either way, you’ve learned something! ;))
If you had to choose between a Les Paul, an ES 335, a Strat or a Telecaster, which guitar would you pick and how would you amplify it?
You can never go wrong with The Book of Questions. Some of the questions can get a little heavy for a first date, but most are pretty good conversation starters. We occasionally pull this book out when we have people over for get-togethers.
Back when I used to date, I’d always ask, “If money, and availibility, were no object, what car would you drive?” It always provided some interesting insight.
If you could be any kind of tree what kind would you be? I started asking that at a party once where I wasn’t having a particularly good time. Mostly they just stared back at me like they can’t believe I asked that. However, one woman answered without missing a beat. I’m afraid I don’t recall what tree it was, but it was one I was unfamiliar with. Anyway, I didn’t make a connection but I did get to spend an interesting 20 or 30 minutes talking with a television comedy writer.
This one got me through a lot of early dates/ flirtations, back in the day.
What’s your favorite color? What are 3 adjectives that describe the color?
What’s your favorite animal? What are 3 adjectives that describe the color?
What’s your favorite body of water? What are 3 adjectives that describe it?
Then, interpret the answers as follows:
The words describing the color are how you think others see you. The words describing the animal are how you see yourself. The words describing the body of water are what you think about sex.
Cheesy, of course, but often sparked some interesting discussions.
I hated being asked about my family on a first date. My family really isn’t small talk.
You make an excellent point here, and it’s something I didn’t address in the OP. On a good first date no more than 2-3 questions such as these should be necessary. A question is asked and if there’s any chemistry the conversation flows from there. I wholeheartedly agree that if you’re just running down a list of questions then maybe the date isn’t going so well.
You are trudging through the Siberian tundra in the dead of winter (don’t ask how you got there, but you’re there). You think you are at least 150 km from the nearest settlement that you know of but have lost your bearings and have no communication devices available to you. You haven’t eaten in a week. You’re famished and exhausted. Feeling like you can no longer go on you collapse in a heap - just when you notice the frozen corpse of a meaty-looking capitalist swine who must have gotten lost out here too. Do you dine?
That’s funny, when I answered your questions in my mind, I said “my bathtub, when it’s full” for the body of water, and “hot, deep, and relaxing” for the adjectives.
“You’re in a room, ten feet by ten feet by ten feet. There are no doors or windows, nor any other means of escape. List three adjectives that describe how you feel.”
The adjectives describe how you feel about death. It’s probably wise NOT to include this question on a date.
On the subject of being more emotional than logical: When you relate a story, don’t be so concerned with factual correctness. Describe the sights, sounds, smells, and feelings of the story.
Good:
“It was a beautiful day, and the sun was bright, and the boat was gently rocking. I felt so relaxed. All of a sudden, it was like the sea was boiling, and this huge wave almost tipped my boat. I was scared shitless! Then this huge freakin’ humpback breached the water, and blew its blowhole all over me, and I was soaked from head to toe! It was awesome!”
Not quite as good:
“On Saturday, July 17, at approximately 3:14pm, I witnessed a specimen of megaptera novaeangliae.”
I actually have had luck a couple times with the counter-intuitive “What was your worst date ever?”
It always brought out the funny in both parties (if they’re capable), and unless the answer is “this one,” your date will quickly realize just how much better your date is than the awful ones you’re both laughing about.
Plus it automatically tells you what NOT to do, i.e. if your date says, “I can’t believe they tried to have sex with me on the first date!” then you pretty much know how your night is going to end ;).
The risk, of course, is that they’ll answer, “my boyfriend of eight years who I just broke up with. . . we had an awful first date, but then we had eight wonderful years together. I miss his smell. What about your bad date?”
